Free Thinking

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Free Thinking: The Greenwich Outrage

The Greenwich Outrage

BBC Radio 4 - Free Thinking, The Greenwich Outrage

Matthew Sweet and guests discuss an attempt to blow up the Royal Observatory in 1894.

The 1894 explosion that inspired The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad and led to a crackdown on anarchist groups organising in London discussed by Matthew Sweet and guests.

In February 1894, the French anarchist Martial Bourdin was killed in Greenwich Park when the bomb he was carrying exploded accidentally.  The event provided Joseph Conrad with the inspiration for his novel The Secret Agent, and the resulting backlash against anarchist groups in London eventually led to the first British immigration legislation - the 1905 Aliens Act. As a conference takes place exploring the incident and its legacy, Matthew Sweet is joined by historians Charlotte Jones, Ruth Kinna and Thomas Jones to discuss the bombing that was dubbed "the Greenwich Outrage".

Producer: Torquil MacLeod

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